Happy Bunny of Lovely Land Likes Carrots
by lightfox847
Summary: Imagine being the son of a woman who wanted a daughter. Imagine being the son of a woman who NEEDED a daughter. Let's just say that it doesn't turn out well. Poor Howard.
1. Prologue

"Good news," the doctor said to the anxious couple in front of him.  
"There don't seem to be any problems with the baby, and we're pretty sure we know it's a baby girl."  
The wife clapped her hands in joy. "Oh, I always _wanted _a daughter!" she sighed dreamily. Her husband smiled apologetically at the doctor and said, "She's got a name list the size of Canada, and they're all for girls," he said. "I'm not sure what she'd do if she had a boy."  
The two men laughed, but the woman was too happy to notice.

The house was a constant array of pink from that day on. Pink streamers billowed from the light fixtures to doorknobs, balloons sporting the words "It's a girl!" bobbed in every corner of the ceiling, and pink roses filled every vase. There were baby showers, and with them were cotton candy tap shoes that would fit dolls, and little primrose giraffes for the baby to play with once born, and adorable magenta outfits with princesses or carousels on the front. There were bibs, binkies, and playthings. They even set aside a room for the unborn child, filling it with frills, hearts, and sparkles.  
And  
all  
of  
it  
was  
pink.

And after all of that pink-preparation for a little girl... imagine the mother's horror when she gave birth to a

lovely  
baby  
BOY.

At first she refused to even believe it. The nurses cooed and showed her the baby, saying, "Look at what a cute little guy he is!" and "He's sure to be the ladies' man someday!" but she wouldn't even bat an eye.

"Bu... bu... bu..." Was all that she said for the first two hours.

Then came the acceptance.

Her husband found her in bed, cradling her new child.

She looked up and smiled.

"Say hello to Daddy, Prunella!" she said.

It took another long while to get the wife convinced that Prunella would not do for their new son. She was disappointed, but at last settled on the name "Howard".

"Howard? Why, that's a pretty big name for such a little boy," was all that her husband said. He was tired, and besides-at least his son had a boy's name. Anything was better than "Prunella".

"She'll-I mean, he'll- grow into it," the wife said, smiling sweetly at baby Howard.

However... while she did consent to acknowledge Howard as a male, and gave him a male name, she refused to take back the clothes and toys, or take down the pink decorations, or repaint the baby's room.

And so it was that Howard was destined, or shall I say doomed... to his fate since even before the beginning.

Poor guy.


	2. Mission Accepted

Author's note: This is assuming that the population is much, MUCH bigger than it really is in the game. The town is also bigger. If I had to live in a town the actual size of Bluebell, I'd probably shoot myself. If you have ideas for OCs, by all means tell me. :3

P.S. Whoever guesses the shapes of the tables wins an Enchanted Cookie. XD

It's no surprise that Howard's favorite color was pink.

The first things you would notice about his shop were the heart-shaped tables, and then the primrose fleur-de-lis wallpaper and the pearl-pink tile. Bleeding Hearts filled the flower boxes outside, and the whole thing was so pink that the village boys wanted to throw up every time they were next to the place.

Well, most of them. It makes sense that flowery Cam would be able to withstand such a demolition of the senses. Plus, he liked Howard's daughter, so of course he stuck around.

Most of the girls liked it, too. They found it very romantic and they enjoyed the fact that Howard was a champion gossiper. (Courtesy of his mother.)

However, for Georgia and Lilian, the place was a pit of no return. They liked to wonder if Howard somehow drugged the sweets he sold, putting something in them that made you turn into a pink-loving vegetable, and if Howard really had had a wife at one point.

"Maybe she was just real manly," Georgia suggested one day as they watched girls sweep in and out of Howard's shop, the "Enchanted Cookie".

Lilian snorted. "What, like a viking woman? HONEY! I'M _HOOOOOME!_

The two of them began to laugh but swallowed their giggles as Laney swept by, rubbing stains out of the outside tables. She stopped at the one the two other girls were seated at and smiled brightly. "Hey, guys! Did you want something? Winter Harmony Day is coming up soon, you know. We have all of your chocolate needs here!"

"I'm good, but thank you," Lilian replied, bristling as she glanced at Georgia out of the corner of her eye. Georgia looked back sharply.

"Really? I think I'll get something," she said abruptly, standing.

"Actually, that's a good idea," Lilian changed her mind, jumping from her chair and running for the Enchanted Cookie. No way was she going to let Georgia get Ash a Winter Harmony gift before her.

Laney trailed after them confusedly, draping her washcloth over one shoulder. "Um, okay." How could two girls so infatuated with the same guy be friends? One minute they were practically sisters, and the next it was like they wanted to rip each other's throats out.

_Oh, well. At least they're buying something, _Laney told herself, and shut the door behind them.

Five minutes later, the two of them were carrying chocolate hearts out of the store, cringing and rubbing their eyes, struggling to clear their vision of the blinding pink. Putting aside their Ash disputes for the moment, they complained to each other about the Enchanted Cookie.

"It's not right," Lilian grumbled, looking down at the chocolate she'd gotten and hoping that it really wasn't drugged. "Howard is more womanly than half of the women in this town."

"Only half?" Georgia giggled. "I'm willin' to bet my best horse it's more like three fourths."

Lilian mulled this over thoughtfully. Then she said, "You know, you're probably right."

They walked as the sky turned the color of orange juice and stopped to rest at the fountain. They would've talked, but what was there to talk about? The town was so uneventful that all there was really to discuss was the weather and that new wart that the mayor's wife had developed under her toenail.

And, well... Howard.

Suddenly Lilian had an idea.

"Hey, Georgia," she said slyly. "You know how we have all of those questions about Howard?"

Georgia turned slowly to face her with an inquisitive eyebrow arched.

"Wouldn't you just love to find out the answers?"

The eyebrow lowered, and a wide, evil smile formed.

"That there's a mission accepted, missy."

"Great." Lilian rubbed her hands together. "Now, how to get the answers..."


	3. Operation Lovely Land

Author's note: If you have a problem with Mikhail, sorry. I have a weird taste in Harvest Moon men, and I know not a whole bunch of people really like him. I do, though, and you already knew that this story was weird! :3 Just a head's up. If you want to read a romance with Cam or something, you won't find it here.

I know that Lilian's Scottish accent needs work... please bear with me. 3 Also, thanks, Ruphira and Accidentally the Whole Fanfic, Ruphira for the nice comment, and Accidentally the Whole Fanfic for the constructive criticism. (See? I took it to heart!) And THANKYOUTHANKYOUTHANKYOUASPE NFORDOINGHTHISFORME! :D I will make you another cookie, and this time, I PROMISE not to drop it or stomp on it or destroy it!

(On purpose, at least. :3)

Disclaimer: I do not own Harvest Moon. (Is that really necessary? I mean, why would you be writing fanfics if you DID own something like Harvest Moon...?)

The Cowgirl-Scottish duo set to work instantly, plotting their mission. (Heck yeah. I just made Lilian Scottish. :D) Meeting up at Lilian's farmhouse and accidentally eating all of the treats they'd bought for Ash, they tried to think up a good starting point.

"Well..." Lilian swung back onto her bed and stared at the ceiling thoughtfully. "We could just walk on in and, I dunno, sit in the corner with sunglasses on. That way we'd blend in and Howard wouldn't be able tae tell that we were starin' at him."

Georgia licked chocolate off of her fingers from her position on the floor and smirked. "Weyll, that might work, 'cept for the customers and Laney. She'd know that we were up ta somethin'."

"True."

They fell silent, brows furrowed.

Lilian bit her lip in frustration and felt her eyes drift toward the open window. She watched absently as a breeze caught the gossamer curtains and fluttered them back and forth.

Windows...

"I got it!" she shouted, clapping her hands and bolting upright. Georgia jumped, startled.

"Ya do?"

"Aye." Lilian nodded deviously and hopped off of her bed, nearly stepping on her friend in the process. "Go home and change intae your frilliest clothes so that we'll blend in. Then meet me at the fountain."

Georgia shot her a wary look and stood up slowly, and replied, "I sure hope ya know what yer doin'."

Twenty minutes later a very nervous Georgia was following Lilian through the street, watching as her friend stuffed a small notebook, recorder, and pack of pens into a small bag slung over her shoulder. The Scottish farmer-ess had a dangerous smile on her face as she ducked into the dense flowery brush next to the Enchanted Cookie and made her way along a little path that led behind the said bakery. Georgia followed, slapping leafy fronds from the plants out of her face as she went.

After a few moments, they broke into a tiny clearing that hugged the back wall of the Enchanted Cookie. A small chute jutted from the pink stone, and below it was a small pile of broken cookies and pastries.

Lilian sighed satisfactorily. "Mah pup, he likes tae come here and eat the scraps," she said proudly. "It's why he's so fat."

Georgia smirked. "Congrats," she said. "Now what?"

Lilian jerked her head at the small chute and knelt next to it. "Beyond this little hole is Howard's kitchen," she explained. "He gossips with his cooks, he does."

"How do you know?"

Lilian shrugged, looking embarrassed. "I chased me pup down here once and overheard."

Georgia folded her arms and crouched next to the chute. As the two friends listened, they began to hear voices. Lilian whipped out her notebook and a pen, ready to take notes.

"...and it turns out, he was dating _both _of them!" Howard's voice squealed. "And now they both won't speak to him, bless their hearts. Sera caught him smooching Venice in the park and let me tell you she was MAD!" For that one word, Howard's voice was suddenly very manly and Lilian and Georgia scrambled backwards. They darted looks at each other and struggled not to burst out laughing.

They listened for awhile, but he was saying nothing interesting concerning their questions about him. Pretty soon the two girls left, too sore and disheartened to keep listening. The only thing covering Lilian's notebook were doodles of sheer boredom.

They stopped just outside the front of the building and stared at it sullenly. Their first mission had been a flop.

Then Lilian smiled, suddenly cheerful. Georgia glared at her, as if angry that her friend was no longer disappointed.

"What?" Lilian defended herself. "'Twan't a total failure... we've got somewhere to go now!"

Georgia rolled her eyes and shifted her weight onto one foot. She folded her arms and argued, "Weyll, that might be true, but I don't reckon that Howard is gonna spill his deepest secrets to his kitchen cronies."

Lilian tapped her chin thoughtfully. "Aye, you're right," she conceded finally. "Listen, I'll think something better up by tomorrow, awrite?"

Georgia shrugged her consent and grinned impishly. "Ya better," she warned. "I'm havin' a hard time waitin' for some answers."

All night, Lilian wondered about what they could do to get the information that they wanted out of Howard. She'd felt pretty clever after finding that chute, but Georgia had a point-Howard didn't like to talk about himself; he just liked to spread gossip about others. She sighed and rolled over in bed.

Then she got something.

Squeaking excitedly, Lilian rocked upright and twisted her quilt in her fingers excitedly. She couldn't wait to tell Georgia her plan.

"You want me to WHAT?!"

Lilian smiled. She'd been expecting this response.

"I wantcha tae become a waitress for the Enchanted Cookie," she repeated.

Georgia looked ready to barf.

"No! No WAY! That there's torture, missy! You can do it, but not me!"

Lilian folded her arms. "Fine, then. I will," she sniffed. "Only one of us needs to do it, anyway."

Georgia regarded her friend, looking concerned. "Weyll, I don't wanna leave you with them too long, either. What if they turn you into one-uh-those mindless freakies that they all are?"

Lilian shrugged innocently. "Well, then, if ye dae think that I'm goin' to be able to handle it, then ye should do it."

Georgia flushed angrily. "No way!" she shouted again, flapping her arms in front of her.

Lilian sighed. It was painful, but there was no way around it.

"If ye do it, ye can have Ash," she said heavily.

"No! I won-what?" Georgia stopped mid-flap and stared at her friend. A little smile formed on her face. "Ya mean it?"

Lilian cringed and nodded.

"Yeeee-HAW!" Georgia squealed like a little girl and jumped up and down. "Sign me up, missy!"

Lilian smiled. "Aye, that'll happen, but first I've gotta fill ye in on the rest of the plan..."

After Georgia had been filled in, the two girls walked into the Enchanted Cookie on a mission. Only one customer was there so early in the day; neither girl recognized him. He was their age, but his hair was such a light blue that was almost white, and his brown eyes were framed with black-lensed glasses. A look of alarm was plastered to his face, and he replied anxiously to whatever Howard had just chirped out. Howard giggled and shook his head.

"Really, Mr. Dunberry, they're quite good! I'll give you an offer-two for the price of one!" Howard jabbed two cookies in the man's direction. The stranger gulped and backed away.

"Like I told you before, I'm really only looking for some breakfast..." he said weakly.

Lilian and Georgia fought down sympathetic snickers. "The great Howard strikes again," Lilian whispered.

"And who says you can't have cookies for breakfast?" Howard asked his frightened would-be customer innocently. "They're practically toast! Only tastier."

The stranger was looking a little pale. Howard had that effect on the newbies. Lilian clicked her tongue and decided to save the frightened guy. Sidling up to the counter, she said cheerfully, "Bonnie day to ye, Howard! Not meanin' to interrupt, but Georgia'd like tae ask ye somethin'."

Georgia gave a little "Eep". Lilian shot her a dangerous look over her shoulder.

It worked. Howard's attention averted to the two girls, and the man flashed Lilian a grateful smile.

"Oh, _Georgia, _darling!" Howard cried, motioning her over. "Cozy on up to Howard and tell me what you wanted to talk to me about. Do you have some good gossip?! Ooh, I simply LOVE gossip!"

Georgia, turning a little pale herself, walked stiffly over to the counter. While they began to discuss Georgia's possible new job, the stranger turned to Lilian.

"Thank you," he said.

Lilian flashed him a grin. "Aye, it's no problem," she replied good-naturedly. "Howard, he's a character. Ye get used to 'em."

He raised an eyebrow and glanced over at Howard like he couldn't believe that was true.

"Whatever you say," he said finally, then smiled at Lilian. "My name is Mikhail. What's yours?"

"I'm called Lilian," Lilian responded brightly. "I came here tae work on the farm and take care of animals. It's good, Bluebell. What brings ye here?"

"I'm a musician none too good at settling down," he said with an amused look in his eyes. "I like traveling, and it's nice here."

"Aye, that sounds like a good life," Lilian said thoughtfully. "Do ye ever get tired of it, though?"

Before he could reply, Howard shrieked like a sixteen-year-old girl, making Mikhail and Lilian jump. They turned to see Georgia cowering backwards as Howard shook her hand so hard that she jerked up and down. "YES!" he screeched. "Of COURSE you can work here, dearie!"

Lilian smiled deviously.

"Why," she said. "Would ye look at that, Georgia?"

Georgia glowered at her.

Howard failed to notice.

"Why don't you come back tomorrow and I'll have my new worker show you around. You two can learn _toGETHER!_" he twittered.

Lilian swallowed laughter. "She'll do just that, Howard. How kind of ye tae give Georgia the job. She's nothin' if not thankful... _right, _Georgia?"  
"Nothin'," Georgia replied, sounding like a robot.  
After waving goodbye, they left, Mikhail hurrying to join them in hopes of escaping Howard. Fortunately for him, Howard was so excited about Georgia's new job he seemed to have forgotten the musician.  
"Aw, chin up, Georgia," Lilian consoled upon noticing the miserable expression on her redheaded friend's face. "Think of it this way-you're goin' tae get paid!"  
Before Georgia could reply, Mikhail released a soft laugh.  
Lilian turned on him. "What?"  
"Ah, sorry," he replied, looking down. "It's just-your accent."  
Lilian flushed angrily. So not everyone had an accent like hers. "What's wrong with it?" she demanded.

Mikhail smiled at her. "I just think that it's cute."

Lilian startled. Her blush deepened, for completely different reasons. "O-oh," she stammered.

Mikhail adjusted his glasses. "Well, I should get going. The mayor is expecting me," he said cheerfully, waving. "Good luck with your job, Georgia, was it? And I'll see you around, Lilian."

He walked off, and Lilian stared after him.

Georgia folded her arms, watching Lilian watch Mikhail. After a moment, she blurted, "Weyll, _that's _not fair!"

"Whu?" Lilian looked over at her, dazed.

Georgia's mouth twitched with irritated amusement. "We _just _made that deal that you'd stop chasing Ash, and now look at ya! You've already got your sights pinned on someone else!"

"Shut up," Lilian mumbled. "I dae have my "sights pinned"..."

"Watch your 'cute' accent," Georgia continued to rant. "It might attract more attention than yer little unbroken heart can handle!"

"I told ye tae shut up!" Lilian protested, then giggled devilishly. "Ye've got tae save your vocal chords for your first day of work tomorrow."

Georgia choked on the air she'd been inhaling.

Seeing that she'd struck a nerve, Lilian said gleefully, "Make sure ye get eight hours of sleep tonight... you're going tae need it, working at a place like the Enchanted Cookie!"

"You just be quiet, missy," Georgia snapped back. "I'm doin' this for the good of society."

The two girls managed to glare at each other for two more seconds before dissolving into laughter.

They weren't anticipating what would happen in their near future.

While the two of them were enjoying the rest of their day, Lilian's dog Brutus scampered down the trail leading to the chute. Happily snuffling, he circled the pile of discarded sweets and gulped them down.

As he ate, his tail began wagging slower and slower. Eventually, it stopped, and then drooped. Soon it was tucked between his legs.

Giving a low whine, he backed away from the unfinished pile, blinking as the world spun before his little doggy eyes. He tried to walk back down the path, but his legs wouldn't go the way that he wanted them to and crisscrossed, making him crumple in a heap. His body felt heavy... so heavy. He couldn't lift himself back up.

Brutus let his head loll to the side. He was suddenly very tired, and the sun felt good, and the sound of the grass whispering soothed the growing ache in his head.

His eyes closed.


	4. Strange Just Got Way Stranger

A/N: Thanks, Ruphira! Your comments make me feel fuzzy inside~ :3

And I'll try to make more sense, Rainie. :/ Ask Aspen to eat your ears for me.

When the merry bell on the front door of the Enchanted Cookie jingled, Georgia felt a sudden, violent urge to rip it off and throw it in the dirt. (The bell, not the door, of course.) She could almost hear her life as she knew it flushing down the drain of Utter Humiliation.

_They'll all thank me later, _Georgia told herself. _And I'll have Ash... s'long as he'll even _look _at me after this._

She steeled herself and walked through the door.

"Oh! Georgia, darling, you're _here!_" Howard's giggle pulsed in Georgia's ears, making her cringe. The said baker rushed from behind the counter to meet her, his arms full with a frilly pink apron. "Here ya go, sweetie!"

He thrust the repulsive article of clothing at Georgia, leaving her with no choice to catch it and put it on. Saying goodbye to her social life, she tied the sashes behind her back and shuffled after her energetic new boss as he slid behind the counter again, whisking up a silver platter laden with frosted brownies and leading her into the back room.

"Now, I'm going to be busy, but I've got someone who can show you around," he was saying sweetly. Georgia forced one foot in front of the other, staring intently at the pearly pink tile floor. _Note to Self: Destroy Lilian when I get outta here, _she thought bitterly.

The kitchen was filled with weird-looking people wearing aprons identical to hers, only they looked HAPPY to be here. Some whistled, and some giggled to themselves, and every one of them was gossiping with someone nearby.

"...And he took her to dinner..."

"...But she was lying, the little sneak!..."

"...Ooh! He _did?_ ButI always thought..."

As he led her past counters and work stations, Howard would put in his two cents as well. "Oh, I _know, _it's outrageous! ...Dearie, you've got it wrong! She was wearing a red dress, not a blue one. ...You _have _to be making that up, because _Callie _told me..."

_Someone shoot me, _Georgia begged silently.

At last they reached the very back of the shop, where a lone soul stood, head tucked down in embarrassment, punching a ball of flour like he wished that it was someone's face.

Someone very familiar looking.

Georgia's jaw dropped. "_Ash?"_

Ash's head snapped up. When he noticed her, his face went beet red and he quickly hid it.

"Ash, darling, would you show Georgia around and tell her what to do? Good, I'll just leave you to it." Howard giggled and waved at them, then skipped off somewhere to... grace someone else with his presence.

Ash punched the flour again.

Georgia stood awkwardly beside him, caught between wanting to scream and laugh. Finally, she managed to splutter out, "What're _you _doin' here?!"

Ash pulled his hat down over his eyes.

"Mom kept hounding me about getting a job outside the farm for, what did she say... social skills?" He chuckled bitterly. "Anyway, Cheryl told her that she'd found a job for me here, and Mom loved it because for some reason she thinks that Laney and I are going to get married someday. Cam wouldn't stop laughing at me for a solid five minutes."

Georgia sucked in her cheeks to keep from laughing herself. "You poor thing," she clucked. "You can bet yer best sheep that I don't wanna be here either. Lilian set me up with it, little devil."

Ash snorted empathetically. "At least it wasn't your parents dragging you to the shop and forcing you. Why did you do it?"

Georgia blushed. _Oh, you know, so I could have you, _she considered saying for about 1 bajillionth of a second.

Instead she decided on telling the other half of the truth. "Weyll, y'know how Howard is a little..." She coughed. "Er, y'know what I mean."

Ash nodded, with a look on his face suggesting suppressed laughter.

"Weyll, we were thinkin' 'bout all the questions we've got 'bout him, like why he is the way he is, what his wife musta been like-we're thinkin' a vikin'-stuff like thayt. And Lilian, bless her schemin' li'l heart, cooked up the idea of havin' me pose as a waitress or somethin' and snoop 'round for the answers."

Ash grinned. "Well, let me know what you find out."

Georgia beamed at him.

"Yessir."

Howard hurried down the rows of his kitchen, flashing smiles, but only adding snippets to conversations now. A few of his workers gave him confused looks, but he giggled them off.

He burst through the kitchen doors, found a worker to man the front desk with Laney, and hurried through another set of doors. As he walked down the (pink) hall, he glanced down at his watch.

He was going to be late.

Plunging through the next set of doors and up the staircase, he broke into the apartment above the Enchanted Cookie where he, Cam, and Laney lived. Pausing only slightly to slam the door behind him, he rushed into his room and flicked on the TV. Grabbing the remote from its position on the armchair, he typed in a string of numbers.

Instantly the TV flickered to life, showing the face of a pudgy man. A set of panels on the television slid away to reveal speakers.

"You're late," the pudgy man fumed.

Howard forced his face to remain calm. "Like, my apologies, m'lord." He sat down on the couch and stared the man in the eye. "What did you want me for?"

"Have you forgotten?" The man's slimy lips twisted in a smile. "It's due time for a progress report, Mr. Greendale. What have you managed to complete since last time? I believe that last meeting you had... oh, _nothing?"_

Howard squared his shoulders definitely. "I'll have you know that Operation Pinkbell is going according to plan," he sniffed. "I've almost perfected the recipes for The Cookies."

The man nodded approvingly. "Well, it's about time," he replied. "What happens next?"

Howard smiled.

"Well, let me tell you..."

The sky was setting when Georgia finally completed her first day of work at the Enchanted Cookie. She and Ash walked out together, too immersed in conversation to realize they were covered in pink flour. Finally Georgia looked down, saw that her hands were coated, and squeaked, alarmed.  
"Guh! S'all over me!"  
Ash looked her over and then regarded himself. He laughed. "This stuff is disgusting. I'll probably have nightmares of pink flour monsters tonight."  
"That'll make two've us," Georgia agreed fervently.  
They stood awkwardly for a second. Georgia hoped that there was a lot of flour on her face so that he couldn't see her blushing.  
Ash opened his mouth to say something, closed it, and tried again. "Well, uh, I'll see you tomorrow."  
"Yeah." She grinned. "Yay. Work."  
He grinned back and waved. He started walking away, then turned around abruptly. "This is gonna sound weird, but I'm glad that you're working there too. You know... someone sane to work with."  
Looking embarrassed, he jogged down the street and around the corner, leaving Georgia slightly confused but happy.  
_He likes bein' 'round me, _she translated, and smiled.  
Wait until Lilian heard about her first day.

~

Apparently, today was not the day for gloating.  
The first thing Georgia heard upon entering her friend's farm was rabid barking, and screams of "Brutus, _stop!_"  
Then she heard crashing.  
Worry zinged through her veins. She picked up the pace, and by the time she reached Lilian's house, she was running.  
The outside was a mess. Globs of pink paint dribbled down the walls and splotches of pink paint smeared the grass. Chicken feathers drifted through the air. Some drifted into the paint and became stuck.  
"Oh, great," Georgia muttered under her breath. Without knocking, she yanked the door open and choked on air.  
If the outside was messy, the inside was horrific. Paint had been thrown wildly across the walls, the windows, furniture-everything. Things had been thrown from their places and strewn across the floor. The wastebasket had been overturned and paper was everywhere-even on the ceiling, suspended by (surprise, surprise) more pink paint.  
In the middle of it all was Lilian, who was seated on the floor and plastered with the pink goodness herself with chicken feathers stuck to her face and arms. She looked as if she'd been crying. Clutched to her was a furiously barking Brutus, likewise coated in primrose paint and feathers; near them was an overturned can of paint labeled "Cotton Candy Sunrise Pink". (Barf.) It, like the two identical cans behind it, was empty.  
"What in tarnation happened here?!" Georgia rushed to help the quivering farmeress, grabbing the dog in her arms and struggling to hold him as he thrashed and growled wildly. His eyes were bloodshot... or maybe pinkshot.  
Lilian remained on the ground. "I...I dae know," she blubbered. "I came home thirty minutes ago and saw Brutus chasing the chickens 'round with an opened bucket o' paint in his jaws. He was splashin' 'em and looked so angry 'bout somethin'... Anyway, the chickens are all over and the naughty dug ruined me house and most of me crops. All the animals're spooked. Stupid dug!" She glowered at Brutus and stood in one furious motion. She jabbed her finger in front of his face. "Yu'll be lucky if I dae send ye to the pound, ye little rascal!"  
Brutus snarled and snapped at her finger. Squeaking, Lilian yanked it out of his reach.  
Georgia pulled the dog back and frowned down at him, suddenly nervous. "What if he's got rabies?" she worried. "Look at his eyes... somethin's not right with 'em."  
Lilian glanced at them. "Aye, I guess," she replied disheartedly. "He got his rabies shot just a month ago, though, he did." She shook her head, looking small and miserable. Pink paint dribbled down her clothes and puddled around her feet. "What else could be wrong with 'im?"  
They were silent for a minute, struggling to think of what to do and what could possibly be wrong. At last Georgia shook her head and hefted Brutus under her armpit like a football. "No point dilly-dallyin' now," she said briskly. "I'll go find somewhere ta keep Brute here outta trouble while you start cleanin' up this mess. 'Kay?"  
"'Kay," Lilian replied sullenly, shuffling to the sink and rummaging around in the cupboard above it for some hand towels. Georgia marched outside, determined to stay upbeat. There was no use in both of them being miserable. Of course, Lilian had the right to be, but she didn't need Georgia to mope around with her. They'd get nothing done.  
She wandered to the back of the house and found Brutus's pen, which consisted of a dog house surrounded by a wooden picket fence. It looked like it hadn't been used in a long while; Georgia knew that Brutus was usually an indoor-dog. Now that was obviously not an option. Georgia stifled a smile. It would be a miracle if the 'stupid dug' was allowed into the house again, ever.  
"Sorry, Brute. You'll be stayin' here for awhile, boy." She plopped him unceremoniously within the fence limits and hurried to slam the gate closed before the furious animal could run out and terrorize anymore of Lilian's chickens or late pumpkins. (Winter was just around the bend, and Lilian was obviously upset that her last crop of the year had been ruined.) The dog leaped at the gate and howled venomously after her as she hurried away.  
Something was most definitely not right.  
The problem was that Georgia could not for the life of her figure out what.


	5. OmnomnomBOOM!

A/N: Thanks, DuchessPinkcat! It's nice to know that people like reading my story! :)

Yep, Ruphira, that about sums it up! :D Although I can't promise that Georgia or Ash will get out of their jobs unscathed... it _is _the Enchanted Cookie, after all. :3

~~~~~~~~

Lilian awoke slumped against the wall, a dishrag still dangling from her fingers. Upon taking a look around, she found the house as clean as it could've gotten with half of its contents ruined; she now recalled cleaning it with Georgia and then running around trying to catch chickens outside for the rest of the day. They'd gotten most of them, but one or two remained missing. Feeling miserable, Lilian stumbled to her feet and shivered.  
Shivered?  
Oh, dear.  
Lilian looked herself over, finding her skin slightly blue. When she breathed out, a misty cloud erupted from her mouth and nose.  
A bitter cold breeze lifted her hair from her neck and she turned toward the open window. She ran to it, wincing as her half-numb toes scrabbled against the floor.  
She reached the window, looked out, and groaned.  
The world that had been colorful and flowery the day before was now a solid, glistening white. Snowflakes drifted from the sky.  
"Aye, let's jest make today even more wonderful, shall we?" she grumbled to herself, shutting the window and making her way into the kitchen. While she made breakfast, she found her eyes drifting to the window again and sighed heavily. Bluebell's seasons were very definite, very precise. One day it was practically balmy, and the next it was like little autumn imps had come into town and stolen away summer, leaving russet-and-golden-leaved trees in their wake. One day you could be outside planting sweet potatoes and pumpkins, and the next they were all dead and buried under three feet of snow. She scowled at the eggs she was making. She really did love Bluebell, but the weather got very, very annoying.

~~~~~~~~~~~~  
She wasn't the only one inconvenienced by the weather change.  
Howard awoke to the squawking of a very distressed, very pink chicken; it must have sneaked in somewhere to escape the cold. It was running around in his room in a flurry of magenta feathers, squalling like it had just witnessed its baby dunked into a vat of boiling oil and cooked into a little chicken nugget.  
Needless to say Howard was particularly miffed with this chicken's audacity. What right did it have to barge into his room at this horrid hour in the morning? Who cared if it was -34 degrees outside? No poultry would make a mess of _his_ room.  
Jumping out of bed (which was so scary it wasn't even funny, given his large stature and choice of pajamas, which happened to be very pink and very covered in princessy tiaras), he advanced on the chicken and let out something between a scream and a bellow. The animal rooted to the spot, a look of terror glazing its eyes. It fell dead silent.  
"Yeah, that's right," Howard grumbled, stooping and sweeping the chicken up by its legs. It dangled upside down, squawking in protest once more, flapping its wings rabidly and nearly catching Howard in the face. He retaliated by shaking it up and down until it couldn't attack him anymore.  
Hardly satisfied, the man threw open his door and stalked (as daintily as possible) to his daughter's room. Upon banging the door open he found her sitting in bed, giggling as she read something off of her laptop. She shrieked when she saw her dad simmering in the doorway.  
"Daaad! What are you doing here? Why-" she wrinkled her nose in disgust. "Ew, why do you have a chicken?" Suddenly her eyes were very wide. "Oh, no. If you make me put that thing in the blender like you did with that one raccoon-"  
Howard released a tight giggle. "No, sweetie, I thought he was yours."  
"Mine? Why would I keep a _chicken?" _Laney rolled her eyes and returned to her laptop. "Honestly, Dad, you are the weirdest person I know." _For many reasons..._  
Howard sniffed haughtily and put his unoccupied hand on his hip. "You will not speak to me in that tone, young lady!" he said in a shrill voice. Laney grimaced and sank down in her bed. Why did her dad have to be such a loser? It wasn't as if she'd never noticed his womanly habits or the way that her friends whispered about him. Honestly, she didn't blame them. She loved Howard, but she was pretty sure she was adopted.  
"Would you please just leave?" she begged.  
Howard sighed dramatically. "_Fine," _he huffed, flouncing out of the room and into his own again. He pouted at the chicken and clucked his tongue. "Now, _what_ am I going to do with _you?" _He emphasised each word with a slight shake. Then he brightened. "Ooh! I know!"  
Prancing to his window, he brushed the lacy pink curtains aside and pushed the window open. "Au revoir, monsieur chicken!" he chirped, and threw the chicken out the window.  
The chicken saw its puny little life flash before its eyes-breaking out of its shell, eating cornmeal and staring at the worms in the ground at Lilian's farm, and then the stupid dog splashing it with paint-several times before colliding with a certain white-blue-haired musician who had the misfortune of passing the Enchanted Cookie at the wrong time.  
"Gah!" With a chicken flapping frantically on his head, Mikhail slipped on the ice and fell hard on the ground. Howard gasped daintily, called, "Ooh, sorry, darling" before slamming the window shut and promptly forgetting about the whole ordeal.  
Muttering darkly under his breath, Mikhail yanked the chicken off of his head and stared at it. Was he seeing things, or was it really pink?  
"Maybe I fell harder than I thought," he muttered, standing back up. He held the chicken out at arm's length, as if afraid it might attack him and turn him pink as well. It just squawked and ruffled its feathers.  
What was he going to do with it? He was considering dropping by Jessica's shop when he remembered the farmeress that he'd met at the Enchanted Cookie. He'd passed her farm a couple of times on his way up the hill dividing Bluebell and Konohana; he decided to drop by there first.  
The chicken squalled and fluffed its wings again. Carrying it stiffly, Mikhail started for Lilian's ranch.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Lilian was sewing up the tears in her favorite couch when she heard a knock on the door. Wondering who would come all the way here on such a cold day, she set her work aside and stood up.  
To her astonishment, she found Mikhail on the other side of the door, holding one of her missing chickens. He smiled at her. "Hello again, Lilian," he said lightly. "I found this chicken-actually, it kind of found me-and I was wondering if it was one of yours."  
"A-aye! 'Tis!" Lilian lurched forward and accepted the squawking chicken from Mikhail's arms. Instantly the bird calmed. Flashing the violinist a somewhat haughty look, it nestled against Lilian and clucked softly.  
Mikhail stared, stunned. "What did you do to it?"  
Lilian looked down at her chicken and then back up at Mikhail, a puzzled look on her face. "Uh, what do ye mean?"  
Mikhail just blinked at the chicken a moment longer and then shook it off. "Erm, anyway." What now?  
"Anyway," Lilian repeated blankly, and then blurted, "It's sure cold today, huh?"  
Mikhail nodded and shrugged. "Yes. But I like it."  
Dang it. Lilian bit her lip. She'd been planning on asking him if he wanted to come in for some hot chocolate or something, but if he liked the cold...  
Before she could help herself she asked, "Would ye like to come inside for somethin' warm anyway?" Then she mentally facepalmed and wondered why she had to be so stupid.  
But Mikhail grinned. "Sure."  
Lilian perked up. "Awrite," she said, stepping aside and letting him come inside. Rather than put the chicken back in its coop with the others, she simply set it inside, where it clucked superiorly and flounced to the fire, Mikhail staring after it all the while.  
Lilian bustled past him, into the kitchen. "Is hot chocolate okay?"  
"Yes, thank you," Mikhail replied absently, eyes locked with the chicken's. It gave a low, rumbly cluck that Lilian failed to notice.  
Lilian puttered around in her kitchen for a minute, setting a pot of water to boil on the stove and opening the refrigerator, crouching and searching for some milk. Mikhail followed her after a long, intense staring contest with the farm animal in his midst. (He lost.) He sat down in a chair before the little table in the center of the dining room, reflecting on the amazing amounts of time chickens can go without blinking until the hot chocolate was ready.  
Lilian set a mug before him and sat down across from him, nursing her own hot cocoa. Rubbing the sides, she once again thought about how stupid she'd been; what was she supposed to say now?  
"So... where's the most amazing place ye've traveled tae?" she finally blurted, a little too brightly. Mikhail startled as if waking from a dream, but the effect vanished almost instantaneously. A smile lit up his face.  
"Well, there's this amazing little town in the hills south from here... have you ever heard of Mineral Town?"  
Chicken forgotten, Mikhail launched into a collection of adventures he'd been on in his travels. Lilian listened, enraptured.  
The chicken watched the two humans and felt unsettled. And bored. She wanted attention.  
Clucking under her breath, she ruffled up her feathers and pranced to the table, where the two people sat. She examined her mistress; her eyes were trained on the person that the chicken had been dropped upon, and they were glittering with admiration. The chicken clucked sourly, willing the spotlight on herself.  
The two humans ignored her.  
Angry, she clucked again, louder. There was still no response.  
Drawing herself up to twice her size, the chicken belted out a cluck that knocked her over onto her beak. Lilian finally looked away from Mikhail and frowned at her poultry.  
"Be quiet, Scratch."  
Scratch did not want to be quiet.  
With as much dignity as she could muster, Scratch stood on her spindly little legs and strutted away from the table a ways. As the humans began to talk again, she started to waddle as fast as she could and then jumped, flapping her wings hard and crashing into the table between them. Lilian squeaked in surprise.  
Satisfied, Scratch righted herself, sat down, and laid an egg right there on the table.

Lilian and Mikhail stared, completely at a loss for words.

The chicken quietly congratulated herself on attention well received... well, kind of. Actually, they were making her somewhat uncomfortable.

Lilian opened her mouth to say something, flapped it uselessly for a moment, and then shut it. Her mouth was twitching upwards. Upon looking on her guest, Scratch found the same thing happening to his.

They looked at each other over the chicken and burst out laughing.

Scratch wasn't sure whether this was a good thing or a bad thing. She decided that her position near the fire was much more comfortable and stood with a flourish, promptly falling off the table.

Before Lilian could right her, the door was banged open to reveal Georgia and Ash, shivering and wide-eyed. They were covered in pinkish flour.

"Georgia? Ash?" Lilian bolted to her feet. "What's wrong?"

"Enchanted Cookie-workers-nom nom nom-and then-BOOM!" Georgia spluttered at the same time Ash was shouting, "Totally covered in-and everyone is-something weird-BOOM!"

Mikhail and Lilian exchanged another look. Scratch decided that everyone in here was insane and took the opportunity to strut out the door and to her coop.

Lilian lurched at Georgia and grabbed her shoulders. "Spit it out, Georgia!" she said, shaking her. "Where's the fire?"

Georgia shook her head rapidly. Her face was pale under the flour.  
"No fire! Chaos!" she choked out, yanking free from her friend's grasp. "At the Enchanted Cookie!"

"I'm never going to speak to Cheryl again," Ash muttered under his breath.

"What's going on at the Enchanted Cookie?" Mikhail asked no one in particular, looking puzzled.

Georgia shook her head again and grabbed Mikhail's arm in one hand and Lilian's in the other. She kicked Ash in the shin. "I'll show ya," she growled, half-stomping, half-sprinting down the trail (which looked really weird).

Unfortunately, the ground was slippery, and the group collapsed on top of each other five times before reaching the Enchanted Cookie.

When they saw the condition it was in, they all knew they'd be scarred forever.


	6. Cookie Kinks

A/N: Just another thank you to everyone who takes the time to read and/or review! And, to whoever "Guest" is, if you have a problem with the title names or the story, no one is forcing you to read it. What are you supposed to name a story about Howard, right? XD And I would appreciate it if you refrained from using profanities. Thank you.

Ha. Ha. Ha. Yes, of course he has a wife. And I'm in the mood for twists... sooooo...

And I like cliffhangers. Just saying. :D

The entire building was covered in a thick film of pink dust, as well as the ice out front. In fact, it was so covered that it was difficult to discern the windows from the walls and the door from the windows. Flower pots lay crumpled at their feet, spilling soil and trampled flowers; several of the outside tables had been overturned. There were skid marks through the pink flour on the ice showing where people had run in and out. Shouts could be heard within the walls, and the heavy bang of pots meeting the ground shook the air. The side of the building cracked slightly.

Shaking themselves from their stupor of horror, the four slipped and slid inside, nearly crashing into a very large woman who was cackling and throwing pink sprinkles into the air like confetti. "Party! Party!" she bellowed, then zeroed in on Lilian, Georgia, Mikhail, and Ash. "Hello, little children," she said in a creepy old man voice. "Would you like to join the tea party? I've got extra plates!" She spluttered out the last word as if trying not to laugh.

When none of them replied, she let out a screech of laughter, threw sprinkles into their faces, and tripped away, smacking her head on a heart-shaped light fixture and passing out on the ground before them.

"I think I might be sick," Mikhail mumbled under his breath.

Determined, Lilian pushed past her friends and over the fat woman sprawled out at their feet. "Oi! Ye there!" she barked to the nearest cook, who was hunched over at a table, giggling hysterically while pouring pink frosting into a salt shaker. He looked up, startled, as Lilian stomped over to him. "What's the meanin' of all this?!" she practically shouted in his face.

He stared, giggled again, and offered her a salt shaker. She grabbed it and without looking away from her prey hurled it at the wall. It exploded in a shower of pink and glass, leaving a stain. The man slowly looked at it and then back to Lilian, shrinking away from her.

"Start talkin', ye mongrel," she growled. "Ye're gonna tell me what's wrong, and ye're gonna tell me _now."_

Her friends, still frozen in the doorway, watched with increasingly widening eyes.

The man quivered in silence for two seconds more before letting out a disturbing sound between laughter and wailing before thrusting something into Lilian's hands. "COOKIE!" he screamed, then leaped out of his chair and, clutching his bottle of pink frosting, ran for an empty salt shaker.

Lilian's gaze dropped to the pastry in her hand-what appeared to be a pink-frosted sugar cookie, with tiny rosebud sprinkles around the edges. In the center was a large sugar paper depiction of a heart with the words, "Cookie of Dreams" in the middle. Weird.

She stared at the cookie a long while, feeling like Alice in Wonderland while she tried to decide whether or not she should eat it. Then a sudden vision of a giggling Howard filled her mind and she quickly set it down.

Finally finding their legs, her friends hurried over and stared down at the pastry as well, like they expected it to sprout limbs and do a little dance on the tabletop. "It's a good thing you didn't eat it," Georgia finally said. "Those're tha things everyone 'round here's been eatin'. They're tha things that started this madness."

"Yeah," Ash jumped in. "This morning he came in and he was all, "Since you're all so wonderful, I've made free cookies for everyone! Eat, my little dumplings! Eat!'"

Upon remembering, Georgia and Ash shuddered in unison.

"You didn't eat any, did you?" Mikhail said, suddenly looking nervous.

Georgia shot him a dry look. "Do I look like a pink freak to ya?" she demanded, then looked down at her pink-covered frame and grumbled, "Never mind. But, no, of course we din't. Duh."

They fell silent, listening to the giddy screaming and sound of crashing utensils.

"So what're we gonna do?" Lilian asked. Her voice was smaller than she would've liked it to, more scared-sounding.

Her question was answered by silence. No one had an answer.

Meanwhile, Howard had locked himself in his room and was listening to the destruction downstairs with a cringe on his face. The cringe refused to go away, even as the TV transformed and the pudgy man returned.

It took the man two seconds to find something was wrong, what with the screaming from downstairs and the grimace plastered to his minion's face.

"The recipe needs work," Howard explained weakly.

The pudgy man nodded very slowly, and with a murderous expression on his face.

"I'd say," he snarled, and before Howard could say more, the screen went blank.

The Enchanted Cookie manager stared forlornly at the blank television screen, and released a sigh. He rose from his seat and crossed to the entertainment center, to where a string of pictures stood.

He picked up the center one, brushed off a film of dust that had collected there, and stared down at the figures in it-him, holding a toddler Laney and a woman with sunshine yellow hair. Her blue eyes twinkled back at the photographer teasingly, carefreely. That smile still filled him with warmth... and sadness.

In a soft voice, he whispered, "Claire."

After awhile, things at the Enchanted Cookie began to wear down. The four friends managed to keep anyone from maiming anyone else and to keep the building standing until the workers eventually collapsed from exhaustion.

When they were finally done, they were all so covered in pink dust it wasn't even funny. They slouched wearily out of the Enchanted Cookie and stumbled their separate ways, concerned about the welfare of not only the bakery but Bluebell, too.

As well they should've been...

The next day Lilian was working on house repairs when Georgia walked onto the farm, fully decked out in her Enchanted Cookie uniform. She wasn't dusted with pink today, though, so Lilian figured this was a good sign and ran to greet her.

"What's wrong?" she asked when she'd reached her.  
Georgia smiled wryly. "Dunno. I'm scared to go alone and I'm too chicken to ask Ash to go with me, so you're comin' to work today."  
The last thing Lilian wanted to do was set foot in that place again, but Georgia looked so expectant that her friend had no choice but to consent.  
As they walked, they tried to ignore the feeling of impending doom engulfing them. But it refused to go away, especially after the Enchanted Cookie came into view. Of course it was still covered in pink flour, but the sight inside made their insides feel like Jell-o.  
Georgia was the first to recover.  
"A-Ash?!"


	7. Inharmonious Harmony Day

A/N: Thank you Ruphira! :D Your comments make me happy! And Guest, it's all right. :3 I will take that as a compliment.

Okay, sooo, this chapter is NOTHING like I envisioned it... I got kind of depressed/lazy but I still wanted to update, so this is what came out of it. Sorry. :/

Poor Claire... I'll be putting her through a lot in this story. Mostly attention from unsavory men. XD *Gets slapped by Claire* Also, I hope everyone knows that creating fluffy moments between Howard and Claire is very awkward. XD

Speaking of which, I should probably put in a disclaimer, since I keep forgetting it. I do not own Harvest Moon. Wait, lemme check-nope. Still don't own it.

Howard had met her on a cooking trip to Mineral Town with his boss, Gourmet. The man was an excellent cook, and Howard learned much from him, although scarred by some of his tutor's habits and looks. Perhaps some of this had to do with some of a local girl named Karen's cooking, but the younger man could quite certainly say that Gourmet had always been a little sick in the head.

On these trips, almost always a young farmeress around Howard's age would participate, and almost always she won. Charmed by her abilities in the kitchen, Howard found himself paying more and more attention to her, trying to find out more about her (stalkerish, maybe, but that was just the way Howard was). Fortunately for him the townsfolk loved to gossip and soon he learned that she'd moved from a big city up north to take over the farm abandoned by an old owner, hoping to escape her past and start over new. She was well liked by mostly everyone, except for some of the girls her age who became annoyed by the constant attention the village boys gave her. Upon hearing this, Howard saddened. How could he compete with them?

With this manner of thinking, it was utterly astounding to him what happened that winter...

He and Gourmet were visiting Mineral Town mid-Winter. They were sitting at a table in the local inn, drinking hot cocoa, when suddenly the door opened and in walked the sunshine-haired farmer, carrying a bundle up to the front desk. "Happy Winter Harmony Day!" she exclaimed to the bartender, handing him three wrapped items from her load.

The bartender chuckled in surprise. "Well, Claire, this is unexpected. Thank you." As he was examining the gifts, his daughter Ann wandered over and asked curiously, "What's Winter Harmony Day?"

"It's a holiday they celebrate where my cousin comes from," Claire explained, smiling. "Usually it's the girls giving boys they appreciate chocolate, but since it's not really official here, I decided just to give some to everybody!"

"Yessss!" Ann grabbed a bundle and grinned at the other girl across the counter. "Thanks, Claire!"

Doug smiled and watched his daughter dart off to eat her chocolate. "You shouldn't have."

"Why not? I had the time and the ingredients," Claire waved off. Then she waved. "Well, gotta go... I still have lots of other deliveries to make."

And off she went, wobbling under the weight of her chocolate.

That's when something strange happened. Howard expected her to pass by, but to his surprise she stopped by the table he and Gourmet were sitting at and smiled shyly at him. "This is for you," she said, handing him one. "Thanks for coming out here and judging our contests. It makes people around here happy."

Howard accepted the gift, stammering. She smiled again, and waved under her parcels before staggering toward the door.

She managed to get the door open all right, but it closed to fast and with a squeak of surprise she dropped all of the wrapped chocolates. Groaning, she knelt to gather them and looked up in surprise as Howard approached to help her.

After all of the packages had been safely tucked into Claire's arms, Howard opened the door and smiled at her. "Happy Winter Harmony Day," he said.

Blushing, Claire smiled back and rushed out the door.

Every Winter Harmony Day after she was gone was even more rotten than the next.

But this time, he could do something to make everyone as miserable as he was.

Lilian and Georgia stood in the threshold of the Enchanted Cookie, staring in terror at Ash, who was sprawled out in a puddle of pink, groaning out incoherent gibberish. His eyes were closed.

Georgia screamed and collapsed next to him. "Ash?! Are you okay?! Are you ALIVE?!" Her voice rose, became shrill with panic. "LILIAN! LILIAN, THEY KILLED 'IM!"

"Rabbits like pink carrots," Ash mumbled.

Lilian struggled to regain composure and forced herself to speak calmly. "It's okay, Georgia. They didn't kill him." She regarded the fallen figure and shuddered. What had happened?

Leaving Georgia blubbering over Ash, Lilian stepped softly through the eerily quiet Enchanted Cookie, studying the pink-covered windows and wreckage of pink roses all over the floor. A thorn sliced her shin and she winced.

As she approached the kitchen, the doors swung apart and a zombie-ish looking cook slouched out the doors, staring at her with empty eyes a moment before disheartedly waving a half-eaten cookie had her before listlessly drifting off into the dining area.

Okay, then.

Pushing her way into the kitchen, she gaped at what she saw. Cooks were strewn all along the floor, dejectedly dissecting pastries and mumbling incoherently. Someone near the door was sitting on the utensil island, laughing grimly and pulling apart-a chicken?!

Thinking of her still-missing chicken Doggie (yes, she'd been feeling like an idiot that day), Lilian screamed and tackled the man to the floor, ripping the poor creature from his hands-

To stare into two, soulless, black button eyes.

Coming off of her sudden adrenaline rush, Lilian rocked backwards, away from the startled man, still staring at the stuffed animal in her fists. Then she looked back up at the man she'd seized it from, taking in his pale face and his quivering frame and feeling a blush stain her cheeks.

"Erm, go-good work," she said as professionally as she could, handing the plush chicken back to the cook and standing. Brushing a handful of feathers off of her dress, she mustered up a smile. "Ye're doin' a great job. I mean, that chicken obviously has too many feathers. Keep at it, would ye?"

The cook's eyes slowly became their regular sizes, and he nodded gravely, as if he were doing the world a great cause by stripping a stuffed chicken. Then he bowed his head again, robotically plucking feathers off one by one. If she listened closely, Lilian could hear him muttering under his breath: "One, two, three, four..."

Oh-kay. _That _wasn't creepy. Backing away, Lilian patrolled the rest of the kitchen, studying each face with growing misery. It was like someone had taken all of the energy from the staff and had replaced it with some sort of gloomy aura or something.

After she couldn't take it anymore, she stomped out of the kitchen and back to where Georgia sat next to Ash. His eyes had opened into slits, but he stared past the two girls, at the ceiling. Instinctively Lilian looked up; nothing was there, of course. She dropped her gaze back to Ash, studying his eyes. They seemed a little cloudy, as if there were tears building up behind them. Weird.

Georgia just sat staring at him, blinking rapidly, hands fluttering around him as if she wanted to do something to help but was unsure what. The sight suddenly made Lilian feel angry and she backed away loudly.

Georgia looked up. "What?" Her voice was thick and whiny.

Lilian glared at her accusingly. "This is Howard's fault," she declared.

Her friend's eyes cleared, giving way to confusion. "Wut?"

Lilian didn't wait for her. She was stomping up to the apartment, where Howard was.

Five minutes later, she came stomping back, glowering with a bundle of pink in her hands. Upon closer inspection Georgia found it was a basket of pink brownies (_Gross_, she decided) and a coupon on the top saying, 'Good for one free Kiddie Cookie!'

Needless to say, Lilian did not look ecstatic about the gift.

"He says that today isn't a good day, but tomorrow will be fine," she muttered in way of response to her friend's concerned glance, moving to walk out the door.

Instantly Georgia was on her feet again, and ran to block the door. "N-now wait second!" she yelped. "What about Ash?"

Unimpressed, Lilian dropped her gaze to the grumbling boy lying on the floor. Then she shrugged. "Um, I dinnae. Leave 'im?"

"No," Georgia said sharply. "Help me carry him, would ya?"

Sighing dramatically, Lilian helped the cowgirl carry the limp boy back to his house.

Later that day, Mikhail went to the town hall, where his apartment was. He had spent the day in the mountains, composing music amongst the barren trees and iced-over streams. Not a pleasurable activity for some, no, but for him, it was.

He was about to turn into the hall when Rutger, who sat behind his bulky chestnut desk filing papers, called him back. "This came in for you earlier," the older man said, smiling and handing over a small package wrapped in butcher paper. Mikhail accepted it, surprised.

"Are you sure it's for me?" he asked hesitantly.

Rutger nodded.

"Who is it from?"

"Lilian dropped it off," the mayor replied, and went back to filling out paperwork.

Mikhail stared a moment longer in surprise before retreating into his room and pulling off the paper. A block of fudge lay beneath, and on top was a note:

'_Thanks for all of the help lately. Happy Winter Harmony Day! ~Lilian'_

Smiling, Mikhail set the gift down on his lap. It had been a long time since a girl had made him blush.


End file.
